“Clearly mad”: What Cabinet ministers have said in the past about suspending Parliament
August 28, 2019
By Sam Bright
Westminster is ablaze with the news that Boris Johnson intends to shut down Parliament in the run up to Brexit, preventing MPs from introducing legislation to block no deal.
This idea, of ‘proroguing’ Parliament to force through a hard Brexit, was pitched by now Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab during the recent Conservative leadership contest – generating some strong views within the party.
Here’s what some of Boris Johnson’s current Cabinet had to say about the idea at the time.
“This idea from some people that to deliver Brexit we should suspend our parliamentary democracy, that we should prorogue Parliament, that goes against everything those men wading onto those beaches [during WW2] fought and died for.”
“You don’t deliver democracy by trashing our democracy”.
Michael Gove, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
“I don’t think that’s the right thing to do. We live in a parliamentary democracy. Parliament must vote in order to ensure we leave the EU.
“Proroguing parliament in order to try to get no-deal through, I think, would be wrong for many reasons.
“It would not be true to the best traditions of British democracy.”
Nicky Morgan, Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Secretary
“Proroguing Parliament is clearly a mad suggestion.
“You cannot say you are going to take back control… and then go: ‘Oh by the way we are just going to shut Parliament down for a couple of months, so we are just going to drift out on a no-deal.'”
You cannot say you are going to take back control… and then go: ‘Oh by the way we are just going to shut Parliament down for a couple of months, so we are just going to drift out on a no-deal.'”